I had alot of trouble looking for cpvc, the guys at hd couldn't even figure it out so I needed up going with copper for a manifold, my question is I see some guys drill the holes on the bottom and some on the top, wouldn't it be best if the holes where on the bottom for maximum wort?

I had alot of trouble looking for cpvc, the guys at hd couldn't even figure it out so I needed up going with copper for a manifold, my question is I see some guys drill the holes on the bottom and some on the top, wouldn't it be best if the holes where on the bottom for maximum wort?

I did the same thing that you're proposing. I've noticed that I still have wort in the mash tun after running off that stops at the top of my manifold. It's not that much wort, and honestly, it's the wort that you really don't want anyways since that is most likely the stuff containing tannins that will lead to astringency.

In my opinion, going with the holes on the bottom helps to clarify the run off quicker. Again, that is just my opinion.

Well, I'd like to thank FlyGuy and everyone else who contributed to this thread. It was a nightmare finding 5/8 fender washers...(6 hardware stores), 2 returns for items that wouldn't work out, countless amount of headaches, and about a week of stress wasted of my life for the washers to be at the Dome Hepot I initially started looking for everything.

I scoured the HD and couldn't find the washers, so I went to others to no avail. Finally, once I was about to give up and buy them online, which wouldn't have allowed me to brew last weekend, I looked them up on HD website. It said they had 36 Crown Lock "Create-a-Bolt," so I bought 8 packs online for a in-store pick-up. By looking at the packs themselves, they looked as if they had been either sitting in a shelf way above my reach or in the back storage doing nothing since no one purchases them besides homebrewers. They had so much dust all all over them.

Anyway MLT construction went perfect, I brew my 1st AG American IPA last Saturday, and even got a 82% efficiency on the first try (beginner's luck). Thanks everyone for the knowledge and confidence that AG doesn't have to be that difficult.

I am going to try and make one out of my 2 gallon water cooler I used to use when I worked outside. I took off the spout and there was this rubber insert:

Here it is inserted in the cooler:

The smaller lip fits between the inner and outer skin of the cooler. The rear larger lip is inside the cooler as shown in the pic above. My question is, is this OK to leave in? I imagine the stainless washer on the inside will just compress this rubber thing which may actually give me the best seal I can think of. I guess I am not sure how this rubber material will hold up. Any thoughts?

What is the reasoning for using a manifold vs. the stainless tubing as described?

Also, I can't say that I read all 205 pages of this thread, but was lead content in brass parts discussed at all? I see John Palmer talks about soaking brass parts in vinegar and hydrogen peroxide to remove lead from brass.

What is the reasoning for using a manifold vs. the stainless tubing as described?

Also, I can't say that I read all 205 pages of this thread, but was lead content in brass parts discussed at all? I see John Palmer talks about soaking brass parts in vinegar and hydrogen peroxide to remove lead from brass.

It's better for fly sparging because it causes less channeling. For batch sparging both are good.